Selling A Dead Rubber: No One Is Buying AJ’s Latest Publicity Stunt

As heavyweight fights go, Anthony Johsua versus Carlos Takam has to be up there as the lowest key build-up in recent history. Despite Kubrat Pulev pulling out as late as 12 days from the fight, there still wasn’t an awful lot of hype around the initial fight between the heavyweights; ‘stay humble, stay hungry’, I guess.

In a recent bid to get people talking about the fight, AJ himself has made the most absurd prediction, which has probably even surprised promoter, Eddie Hearn:

“People have said: ‘Josh, what round? What round?’ I think we’re going for a 10 to 12 round fight because this guy’s head is like a block of cement.”

“Carlos is different [to Kubrat Pulev] – he can trade down the middle. My speed will beat his combinations. A good way to beat Carlos is to take his body out, that’s what Alexander Povetkin did to him. I look at each individual fighters, and what their strengths are.”

— Anthony Joshua, speaking to Sky Sports

For all of Joshua’s media niceties, saying the clash at Cardiff will go 10 to 12 rounds shouts of the headliner trying to get people excited about the fight; where really, on Saturday night, fans will tune in to pay the 20 odd quid to watch the Briton dispatch an unknown entity within minutes.

Joshua will tower over Takam at the Principality Stadium with the Cameroonian-Frenchman only at a height of 6ft1′, and is expected to weigh-in a stone lighter than AJ; the writing’s on the wall for the 36-year-old before he steps foot in the Welsh capital.

Regardless, it doesn’t matter; AJ’s popularity and explosiveness in the ring will still mean the Principality will be a sell-out, and Eddie Hearn will go home a happy man on Saturday night with the pay-per-view of the fight likely to make his pockets just that little bit deeper.